Chapter 289 — You Are Not Me, and I Am Not You

Though it clashed with the elegant villa, Gu Mengyao said nothing. Compared to the beginning, she had grown far more easygoing; she had gradually come to accept Wei Zhao, tacitly acknowledging the fact that he was now a member of this household. So when Wei Zhao parked a beat-up car in the yard, Gu Mengyao simply pretended not to see it.

After a moment's thought, Wei Zhao took out his phone and dialed Qiu Lingshan's number. His own phone had broken, and he was now using an old hand-me-down that Shen Yushu had retired.

The pink shell phone made Kang Xiaobo, sitting beside Wei Zhao, stare wide-eyed. Tang Yun, on Wei Zhao's other side, was chatting with Liu Xinwen up front and didn't notice a thing.

"Hello? Wei Zhao?" Qiu Lingshan picked up. The memory of yesterday's business still rankled, but she said, "Your photos—I've already sent them to your phone's inbox. Just check and confirm. Anything else?"

"Oh, I'm calling about something else," Wei Zhao said. "I've got a beat-up van with no plates. Can you fix me up a set?"

"I'm a criminal investigator, not a traffic cop!" Qiu Lingshan was furious at his words. "Do you have nothing better to do? I'm busy every single day. If you want to register your car, go to the traffic police, OK? The vehicle registration office is on the back street west of the municipal bureau..."

"The car isn't new either. Where am I supposed to register it? If I don't come to you, who else?" Wei Zhao was speechless. Was this girl dense? Did she have a comprehension problem? If the car could be registered through normal channels, why would he be asking her?

"Then there's nothing I can do! Stop pestering me—a major case just came up and I'm swamped!" Qiu Lingshan said impatiently. "Remember this: I'm a criminal investigator. Don't make me do things unrelated to my work! If there's nothing else, I'm hanging up!"

"Oh, I'll remember. You remember something too: I'm a student, not a cop, and not Ultraman. From now on, don't come to me for anything unrelated to studying." Wei Zhao was a little angry. It was just a small favor—was there any need for all those words to put him down?

"..." Qiu Lingshan really wanted to smash the phone. But she held herself back and didn't. "The car isn't stolen, is it?"

"No. It should have had proper paperwork before. Just pull the file and you'll see—it was Hei Bao's." Wei Zhao smiled. The girl had finally caved.

"Then drive it over this afternoon! But if I find out it's a stolen vehicle, I'm confiscating it on the spot!" Qiu Lingshan said through gritted teeth.

"Heh... all right." Wei Zhao hung up with a smile.

"Boss, your phone... how'd it end up like this?" Kang Xiaobo had no interest in the call itself. He'd seen Wei Zhao drive far better cars, so a beat-up van didn't stir him at all.

"Didn't I say? My phone broke. This is a hand-me-down from a friend—just borrowing it for a few days," Wei Zhao said.

"Let me see?" Kang Xiaobo held out his hand.

Wei Zhao thought nothing of it and casually handed the phone over.

Kang Xiaobo flipped it open—and his eyes went wide! The wallpaper on the screen was Shen Yushu! He wanted to ask something, but a glance at Tang Yun on Wei Zhao's other side shut his mouth.

That kind of question was asking for a fight. However slow Kang Xiaobo might be, he didn't dare ask it now! If Tang Yun got the wrong idea, that would be bad!

Still, Kang Xiaobo nudged Wei Zhao with his elbow, returned the phone with a wicked grin on his face.

By now Wei Zhao had noticed the photo of Shen Yushu on the screen too, and smiled wryly. "The owner of this phone is the same person as the owner of that Beetle from before..."

Having Shen Yushu's photo discovered by Kang Xiaobo twice made Wei Zhao a little embarrassed. He'd really have to be more careful from now on. When he'd borrowed the phone from Shen Yushu, he hadn't thought much about it—just using it for a few days as a stand-in, too lazy to change the settings inside. Who'd have guessed Kang Xiaobo would see it?

Somewhat awkwardly, Wei Zhao navigated to the picture menu, meaning to switch the wallpaper. But he'd have been better off not going in—once he did, Kang Xiaobo's eyes went even wider!

There was more than one photo of Shen Yushu in there. And not just Shen Yushu—Gu Mengyao too! And they were all candid shots: eating together, shopping, selfies at home...

Wei Zhao broke into a cold sweat, snapped the phone shut, and stuffed it into his pocket. He glanced awkwardly at Kang Xiaobo, whose face had taken on a look of sheer astonishment!

Now, even if you told him this phone belonged to Wei Zhao, he wouldn't believe it! Never mind that the color was obviously meant for a girl—just judging by those photos, there was no way it was Wei Zhao's!

There was no way Wei Zhao could have so many photos of Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu. They weren't the kind of revealing private shots, but they were still very personal, intimate snapshots of daily life. How had Wei Zhao gotten his hands on them?

But if the phone wasn't Wei Zhao's, then whose was it?

Still, Kang Xiaobo was clearly not the sort to be careless about what mattered. Though a hundred questions churned in his mind, he could only bury them for now—saying anything would surely make Tang Yun misunderstand.

The taxi pulled up at the inpatient entrance of the hospital. Wei Zhao paid the ten-yuan fare and got out.

"Wei Zhao? Is that you?" A pleasant, delighted voice sounded behind him.

Wei Zhao turned around and saw Guan Xin. "Oh, it's you. Heh, what a coincidence!"

"Yes! Wei Zhao, are you here to visit your friend? I happen to be going to give her an injection. Let's go up together!" Guan Xin was visibly overjoyed to see Wei Zhao.

These past few days, she'd been loitering around the inpatient wing for no particular reason—or perhaps only for the chance to run into Wei Zhao. She'd volunteered to take on the injection duties for this ward, and had gotten on familiar terms with Liu Xinwen, Kang Xiaobo, and Tang Yun.

Only, whenever the prettiest of them, Tang Yun, looked at her, there was a smile on her face but a trace of wariness and hostility in her eyes... Guan Xin understood perfectly well why. The girl was afraid she'd come to steal her boyfriend.

In truth, Guan Xin wasn't really trying to compete with Tang Yun over anything. She wasn't even certain of her own feelings. She simply felt a gratitude toward Wei Zhao that came from the heart, and wanted to see more of him, to talk with him. As for anything beyond that, she hadn't given it much thought.

Tang Yun pressed her lips together, her face a little pale. Liu Xinwen noticed the change in her expression too, and squeezed her hand, murmuring, "What, afraid she's come to steal your man?"

Tang Yun shook her head slightly. "What's so good about him? As if everyone's after him. Let her steal him—saves me from him taking advantage of me..."